All-Star break comes at perfect time for Warriors

The Golden State Warriors haven't just stumbled into the All-Star break; they've tripped over themselves, lost their balance and smacked their heads on the hardwood.

A home loss to the Houston Rockets Tuesday marked the Warriors' fifth straight defeat after reaching a season-best 13 games above .500 on Feb. 2.

The losing streak dropped up-and-coming Golden State to 30-22 and into the sixth seed in the Western Conference entering this weekend's All-Star festivities.

Nobody needs the break more.

The Warriors have been blown out during their five-game skid, losing by 18.4 points per contest while giving up an average of 116 points. Even more embarrassing, three of the losses came by 21 points or more.

The indifference was apparent.

The disinterested Warriors played from behind in most of the losses, building deficits the offense couldn't overcome and the defense wouldn't stop from growing. They've been lazy, displayed little effort and showed no real desire to win.

The reason? Golden State was demoralized at having to play without its backup point guard -- Jarrett Jack missed three of the past four games with a shoulder issue.

Now, that's not to say the starters did everything right; they too got burned on defense and clanked plenty of shots.

But Jack is the key to the Warriors' success. Without him, they don't have another player capable of running the offense when Stephen Curry is out of the game.

Because of Jack's shoulder soreness, benchwarmers Charles Jenkins and Kent Bazemore -- neither of whom have played a full NBA season -- saw significant playing time, much to the team's detriment.

Curry often needs to sit on the sideline, whether because of foul trouble or regular rest to manage injury concerns, so the Warriors depend on Jack's veteran experience and productivity (13 points, 5.8 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game).

Bazemore and Jenkins, who average 3.7 points, one assist and one rebound between them, just don't cut it.

No Jack equals consistent losing.

And with the Warriors struggling in recent weeks, national pundits have pondered whether the starting backcourt tandem can thrive together.

Klay Thompson has shown improvement throughout his sophomore season, but his streaky shooting has helped and hurt his team.

Thompson shoots 42.9 percent on 3-pointers in Golden State wins but only 33.1 percent in losses. He needs to find a consistent rhythm otherwise his days in yellow and blue could be numbered.

If Thompson gets shipped out, Curry will have gone through two shooting guards so far in his young Golden State career -- fan favorite Monta Ellis was the other.

The 24-year-old Curry is definitely the Warriors' best scorer, posting 21 points per game and a 44.7-percent clip from behind the arc. The problem is not many title-winners had point guards double as the team's No. 1 offensive threat.

Magic Johnson is one name that comes to mind; Isiah Thomas may be another.

But none of the modern dynasties (Michael Jordan's Bulls, Kobe Bryant's Lakers or Tim Duncan's Spurs) were built around high-scoring point guards.

Then again, the Warriors probably aren't blinded by championship aspirations; they're just trying to make the playoffs - something the franchise has done only once in the past 18 seasons.

They're certainly in great shape to accomplish that goal, sitting in the middle of the pack in the West and a handful of games clear of the ninth seed.

Halting the five-game slide should be the team's top priority after the All-Star break. Staying healthy has to be a close second.

Golden State needs guys like Curry, Jack and center Andrew Bogut on the court every night because it lacks the role players to fill those voids.

Routine production out of the small forward position would help as well. Rookie Harrison Barnes is off to a decent start (9.3 points and 4.2 rebounds), but he's only had consecutive double-digit scoring games three times this season. The Warriors need more from him as a starter.

For the first time in years, the Warriors enter the midseason break in position for a postseason berth. They have the talent and capability to control their destiny, as they've shown throughout the season -- even during the current winless streak.

The options are simple: Get it together and face a favorable first-round matchup, or continue to lose focus and prepare to watch from home. It's really up to them.